Ubisoft keeps Beyond Good and Evil 2 in pre-production after 18 years, nearing alpha

Ubisoft's Beyond Good and Evil 2 remains in pre-production 18 years after its 2008 reveal. About 250 people at Ubisoft Montpellier are working on the project, Origami Media reports. The game shifted from a multiplayer third-place concept to a solo-first narrative with optional co-op. Internal milestones, called gates, were repeatedly missed as design goals kept changing, Origami says.

Beyond Good and Evil 2 missed every internal milestone, called gates, per Origami Media.
Teams pushed deadlines back repeatedly to refine combat and narrative loops.
People inside the company said unconditional backing effectively became a poison for the title.
The project surpassed Duke Nukem Forever's 14-year record, becoming gaming's longest-running development in 2022.

Ubisoft's wider restructuring has closed Trials developer RedLynx and downsized Singapore's Black Flag Resynced team.
Reported layoffs also hit Ubisoft's Germany offices amid the same cost-reduction drive.
The BGE2 team is now told outcomes are no longer guaranteed, sources said.
About 250 staff remain in pre-production while the studio pushes toward alpha, per Origami Media.

Keeping 250 staff in pre-production for 18 years sustains costs without shipped revenue.
Origami Media frames the project as one that avoids cancellation yet never reaches completion.
Ubisoft's broader restructuring signals indefinite development timelines no longer guarantee continued investment.

For Investors & VC: Add pre-production duration and missed-milestone counts to diligence on publisher AAA pipelines.
For Publishers & Developers: Attach funded kill-dates to every pre-production gate review on long-running flagship projects.
For Service Vendors: Pitch alpha-stage QA and art outsourcing to the studio before cost reviews conclude.